History Of Japanese Buddhism Research Articles

Dōgena Fukan zazengi jako tekst ujawniający istotne rysy buddyjskiej praktyki

The aim of this article is the presentation and relatively detailed analysis of the text written by the medieval monk Dogen entitled Fukan zazengi. This is one of the most important religious scriptures in the history of Japanese Buddhism and Buddhism in general, constituting the basic instructional manual within the wide Mahayana current. In the article I present the author’s view, which boils down to emphasizing the importance of independent meditation practice based on examples of former masters. At the same time, I emphasize the fi nal mystery of the actual practice itself and Dogen’s advice to reject the understanding of religious practice in terms of profi t and loss. The paper also touches the problem occurring within two versions of the discussed meditation instruction. The diff erences in the two texts are twofold, on the one hand, more or less signifi cant corrections throughout the whole text and on the other hand one fundamental change that determines the core of religious practice, which is, after all, a sine qua non of Buddhism. As I will try to prove, this change, contrary to appearances, is not as revolutionary as it might seem and both versions reveal the same secret of sitting meditation.

ВЫБИРАЙ СВОЙ РАЙ. ЖИЗНЬ И СМЕРТЬ МОНАХА ГЭНСИНА В РАССКАЗАХ СЭЦУВА

Monk Genshin (942-1017) went down in the history of Japanese Buddhism not only as a teacher of the Tendai school, who for the first time substantiated the teaching of Buddha Amida and the Pure Land, as a compiler of interpretations of sutras, treatises, sermons and many other works, but also as a hero of setsuwa didactic tales. Stories about him appear in the collection of legends about the miracles of the Lotus Sutra in the middle of the 11th century, then in the book of stories about the rebirth in the Pure Land and in the Konjaku monogatari shū of the early 12th century. Then, in almost all major collections of setsuwa, tales about Genshin are found, with the early detailed narratives being replaced by brief descriptions of individual episodes from his life. The stories talk about how Genshin from a temple monk became a hermit, about his relationship with his mother, about the works of the Buddhist scribe and his meetings with other monks and lay people, about miracles at the hour of his death. The peculiarity of these tales is that Genshin does not always appear in them as the main character: he often plays the more modest role of waki wanderer, a guest of other monks, priests and laity: in response to his questions, they reveal their understanding of the Buddhist path.

История японского буддизма в «Собрании стародавних повестей». Часть II: строители пагод, учредители обрядов, знаменитые миряне, вставшие на Путь Будды

В «Собрании стародавних повестей» («Кондзяку моногатари-сю:», 1120-е гг.) за рассказами о начале буддизма в Японии и об основании храмов (свиток 11-й) следуют предания о строительстве пагод, учреждении обрядов, созда­нии статуй будд и других благочестивых делах (начало свитка 11-го). Важ­нейшую роль здесь играют обеты и их осуществление, тем самым личные истории подвижников связываются с историей буддизма в масштабе всей страны. В отличие от источника, откуда взяты рассказы о происхождении обрядов («Самбо: экотоба», X в.), здесь эти предания не сведены в кален­дарный цикл; внимание повествователя сосредоточено не на полноте обес­печения общины необходимыми ритуалами, а на том, как разные люди в различных обстоятельствах приобщаются к буддийской традиции через посредство священных текстов и соотносимых с ними обрядов, и этот ряд подвижников выглядит как принципиально не замкнутый, открытый для но­вых замыслов и их исполнения. Тема личных историй продолжается в свит­ке 19-м, где речь идет о причинах «пробуждения сердца», решения уйти в монахи. Среди персонажей этих историй – люди разного положения: ро­дичи государей, придворные, воины, их приближенные, простолюдины. Принятие монашества для каждого из них оказывается не сменой социаль­ного статуса (с мирского на монашеский), а выбором новой цели, лежащей за пределами земной жизни, в «будущем веке». Особенный интерес пред­ставляют рассказы о постриге знаменитых писателей и поэтов: в них исто­рия буддизма связывается воедино с историей японской словесности.

Review of: William E. Deal and Brian Ruppert, A Cultural History of Japanese Buddhism

Review of: William E. Deal and Brian Ruppert, A Cultural History of Japanese Buddhism

The Invention and Reception of the Mino'odera engi

In this article, I attend to creative processes involved both in writing and reception of jisha engi, through example of a twelfth century Shugendo engi called Mino'odera engi. First, I examine how Mino'odera engi contributed decisively to hagiographic evolution of En no Gyoja, seventh-century figure whom Shugendo practitioners chose as their founder. Then I focus on way in which this text was used and received, both at Mino'odera and in a broader, regional context. Through comparison with historical, literary, and religious sources, I argue that documents like Mino'odera engi played an instrumental role in restructuring spatial and temporal imaginaire of their surroundings and of Japanese Buddhism. Overall, my aim is to draw attention not only to composition and contents of engi-type documents, but also to their use and circulation in early medieval period.KEYWORDS: spatial and temporal imaginaire-Mino'o-En no Gyoja-yamabushi-sangoku denrai-Kanjo-Ninnaji-Shichi tengu-e(ProQuest: ... denotes non-US-ASCII text omitted.)AS DISCUSSED in introduction to this special volume, jisha engi ... narrate origins, which is to say invention, of sacred sites. Although in many cases research on engi has attended primarily to circumstances surrounding initial process of textual composition, more creativity is involved in reception of these texts. My objective in this article is to illustrate this assertion through an analysis of Mino'odera engi.Religious practice in mountains (sanrin shugyo ...), which was an integral element in religious culture of Mino'o, had been common among both semi-lay figures and official monks (kanso ...) even earlier than Nara period (Tsuji 1991, 1-6). In Heian period, monks who had acquired marvellous powers (genriki ...) through practice in mountains joined specialists in esoteric ritual as persons of power (genja ...) who served emperor or high-ranking aristocrats by performing healing treatments (Tokunaga 2001). During insei period, yamabushi ..., literally men who lie down in mountains, who were not necessarily fully ordained, gained public recognition for their special powers. Yamabushi were employed among guardian monks (gojiso ...), who were charged with ritually protecting emperor's person (Wakamori 1972, 108-10). It was also during insei that pilgrimage to Kumano became popular among royalty and aristocracy (Moerman 2005); when retired emperors traveled to Kumano, they employed yamabushi as their pilgrimage guides (gosendatsu ...), rewarding them with honorary monastic rank and office (Miyachi 1954, 93-129, 147-69; Tokunaga 2002).As a corollary to their new recognition in social sphere, yamabushi also began to make a place for themselves as important participants in history of Japanese Buddhism. The legitimacy of Japanese Buddhism was grounded in understanding that Buddhism had been transmitted in an unaltered state from India to China and then Japan: this concept is known as through three countries (sangoku denrai ...). Therefore yamabushi, who did not trace their dharma lineage back to India, were situated outside of Japanese Buddhist orthodoxy. During insei period, yamabushi for first time appear to have felt need for a founder of their own.1 En no Gyoja ..., most famous historical mountain practitioner, was chosen and vene- rated in this role. Importantly, En had long been known as an upasaka (ubasoku ...), that is, as a religious specialist who had not been officially ordained as a Buddhist monk. In time, En no Gyoja's apotheosis as a founder figure was so successful that, based on temporal and spatial imaginaire of Japanese Buddhism, which had been shaped by notions of transmission through three countries, temporal and spatial imaginaire of sacred mountains around (that is, Kyoto) and the southern capital (nanto . …

Review of: Kenji Matsuo, A History of Japanese Buddhism

Review of: Kenji Matsuo, A History of Japanese Buddhism

Kuroda Toshio (1926–1993) on Jōdo Shinshū: Problems in Modern Historiography.

Kuroda Toshio's revisionist history of medieval Japan is well known, but the historiography behind the revisions is not fully understood. This article first places Kuroda among other post-war Japanese intellectuals and then examines the particular significance of his work. Kuroda's contribution is not limited to medieval history, but has much broader implications for comparative studies in areas such as the relationship between religion and politics or religion and the modernization process. Because Kuroda viewed the Pure Land Buddhist Sect, Jōdo Shinshu, as the most progressive and politically independent sect in the medieval period, Shinshu plays a particularly important role in Kuroda's history of Japanese Buddhism.

Nichiren's View of Women

In the history of Japanese Buddhism since the medieval period, male priests have preached the doctrine that women, who are deeply sinful, cannot attain Buddhahood unless they are reborn as men. This idea remains firmly fixed in the minds of some priests. Despite the fact that in the Kamakura period Nichiren refuted such discriminatory views and taught that could attain Buddhahood just as they are, there are still some male priests within the contemporary Nichiren-shu priesthood who continue to preach this idea. Taking the passage women should follow men, which appears in Nichiren's writings and refers to feudalistic morality within the context of the times it was written, these priests appropriate these words for their own purposes, passing them off in their sermons as the Buddhist teachings of Nichiren. The statements and actions of male priests who enforce derogatory views of symbolize a discriminatory attitude that exists in the contemporary sangha. Female Buddhist practitioners feel that we can change this by shedding light on the reality of the situation and bringing about a revival of the true teaching of the founder.

Honen's Senchakushu: Passages on the Selection of the Nembutsu in the Original Vow (Senchaku hongan nembutsu shu)

Honen Bo Genku (1133-1212), or simply Honen, is one of the outstanding figures in the history of Japanese Buddhism. This is a translation of Honen's seminal work, Senchakushu, which was compiled over a period of intense devotion to Amida Buddha.

Japan's Modernization and Buddhism

The question as to the role of traditional Japanese culture, as it developed during ancient and feudal times, in modern society, or as to its historical significance, is a question of extreme importance and, at the same time, a question which is not easily answered. Also the question of the relationship between Japan's modernization and Buddhism is, in fact, a part of the larger subject, namely, of the influence of traditional culture today. In the field of art, much basic research on the so-called modern period since the Meiji era has been undertaken; in contrast to this, the study of Buddhism in modern Japan lags far behind. Works of genuine academic achievement are few. Although there is the Nihon kindai bukkyo-shi kenkya (A Study of the History of Buddhism in Modern Japan) by Kynichi Yoshida, it may be that the time for a scholarly and documented survey of the connection between Japan's modernization and Buddhism has not yet arrived. I am really not a specialist in the history of modern Buddhism and thus totally unqualified to write on such a subject. However, as I am interested in both the history of Japanese Buddhism and the history of modern thought, and have some impressions though perhaps academically unsound about the connection between Japan's modernization and Buddhism, I have decided

Zen Buddhism and Muromachi Art

When tea ceremony, flower arrangement, Noh drama, linked verse (renga), monochrome painting, and dry-landscape gardening are said to represent Japanese culture, it is usually assumed that they were produced and fostered by Zen Buddhism. If we are fully to understand these art forms, we must therefore make a systematic study of their relationship to Zen. The particular species of Zen diat is said to have produced and fostered these arts is the Rinzai Zen developed by Muso at the beginning of the Muromachi Period (1336–1573) when Zen first became a pervasive influence in the cultural history of Japan. Let us look, then, at the position of Muromachi Zen in the history of Japanese Buddhism.

A History of Japanese Buddhism.

A History of Japanese Buddhism.

Prince Shotoku and His Position in the History of Japanese Buddhism

Prince Shotoku and His Position in the History of Japanese Buddhism

History of Japanese Buddhism: Ancient Period.

History of Japanese Buddhism: Ancient Period.